Chapter 590: Chapter 590: Will It Be Inherited?
Dr. Liang said, “I believe this term might be somewhat unfamiliar to you. This is indeed a rare disease, a rare degenerative disorder.”
Du Shaoheng asked, “So how is this disease treated?”
As soon as he finished speaking, the doctor suddenly fell silent, seeming somewhat hesitant.
Du Shaoheng felt a jolt in his heart, squinted slightly, and asked, “Is this disease really hard to treat?”
Dr. Liang raised his head and, with difficulty, slightly curled his lips, “Regrettably, I must inform you that currently, clinical medicine does not offer a definitive cure for this condition.”
Du Shaoheng suddenly fell silent.
He lowered his head, lightly rubbing his thumb against his forefinger, and after a while, asked hoarsely, “So this means it’s terminal?”
Dr. Liang: “Currently, yes.”
Du Shaoheng’s breath became slightly unsteady.
He inhaled sharply, and for a moment, he experienced tinnitus.
As a result, he couldn’t clearly hear Dr. Liang’s continuous explanation of the condition.
It seemed to be quite a while before his hearing returned.
Dr. Liang: “…Spinocerebellar ataxia, currently this large category of disease has many subtypes. Once this disease manifests, if not promptly intervened, it will rapidly worsen. However, the patients I’ve dealt with have varying survival periods, some dying five months after diagnosis, while others were diagnosed ten years ago and are still alive.”
Du Shaoheng: “So, optimistically speaking, I could live another ten years.”
For a moment, Dr. Liang was at a loss for words.
Du Shaoheng suddenly asked, “Will this disease be hereditary? I have two children.”
This was his most pressing concern.
As far as he knew, his family did not have any hereditary diseases.
Dr. Liang said, “The majority of patients have a hereditary condition, some are due to genetic mutations, and a very small portion are caused by traumas. Mr. Du, have you had any brain injuries in the past?”
Du Shaoheng answered, “I had an accident in middle school, and my head was injured, but at that time, the doctor said it wasn’t a serious brain injury.”
Dr. Liang said, “Mr. Du, don’t be nervous, I only have preliminary suspicions and you haven’t been diagnosed yet. To confirm the diagnosis, these tests are not sufficient, and we need to do a few more tests. Also, if you’re concerned about whether this disease is hereditary, you could cooperate with me by doing an MLPA test and a special genetic test, which would reveal if it could be passed onto the next generation.”
Du Shaoheng asked, “Can this be done today?”
Dr. Liang: “If you have time today.”
Du Shaoheng raised his wrist and looked at the watch, “It might be too late. I’m accompanying my son for rehabilitation today, and he’s about to finish his training; I need to take him home.”
Dr. Liang: “Then let’s do it tomorrow. In anyway, the sooner the better.”
Du Shaoheng nodded and stood up.
He walked to the door, turned around, and said to Dr. Liang, “Dr. Liang, thank you.”
Dr. Liang said a bit helplessly, “Mr. Du, I hope tomorrow’s test results are optimistic.”
Du Shaoheng nodded.
How he hoped this was just a false alarm.
He took the elevator to the floor where the rehabilitation room was located.
Junjun just finished his rehabilitation training.
The effect of this session was very noticeable.
Originally, he had been in a wheelchair for a long time, his legs had stiff knee joints and couldn’t bend, but now, at a glance, his legs looked a bit straighter.
The doctor prepared to lift Junjun onto the wheelchair.
Du Shaoheng immediately walked over, “I’ll do it.”
He bent down and lifted Junjun onto the wheelchair.
Junjun looked up, “Dad, the doctor said if I come two more times, I can walk on the ground.”
Du Shaoheng smiled, “That’s good news.”
He could see Junjun was very happy, his face glowing with a smile.
Junjun said, “Where did you go? I saw you weren’t here when I was taking a break.”
Du Shaoheng said, “I took a walk in the rear garden.”
He squatted down, gently rubbing Junjun’s tender cheek, with his handsome eyes slightly curved, “Are you thirsty? Do you want some water?”
Junjun said, “A bit.”
Du Shaoheng said, “Okay.”
He pushed Junjun downstairs and bought him a bottle of mineral water from the vending machine.
Junjun had just finished therapy and was a bit exhausted, unable to even twist open the bottle cap.
Du Shaoheng took the bottle from him, twisted off the cap, and handed it back.
Junjun hugged the bottle and drank in large gulps, clearly he was truly thirsty.
Du Shaoheng sighed, tightly clutching the report in his hand, flipped through a few pages, and gazed at the medical record filled with the doctor’s scribbles, feeling somewhat uneasy.
Although he hadn’t been diagnosed yet, he couldn’t help but wonder what he would do if he were diagnosed with this disease.
If he truly had this disease, how long could he live?
A year?
Five years?
Ten years?
Would he still have the chance to watch his two children grow up healthy and happy?
The concept of death was too vague, too abstract for him.
He couldn’t imagine, being so young, suddenly one day having to face such a cold term.
Therefore, regarding death, he had no fear or dread.
Now, he harbored a bit of hope, he wished it was a misdiagnosis.
Even if he was confirmed to have this disease, then… he hoped that it wasn’t caused by genetic mutation.
Junjun finished an entire bottle of water, and Du Shaoheng said, “Dad will take you home.”
“Okay.”
The next day.
Du Shaoheng went to a meeting at the company early, and after the meeting, he went to the hospital to do two additional tests.
Dr. Liang told him that the test report needed to be sent to the laboratory and the results would be available next week.
A week later.
As usual, Du Shaoheng took Junjun to do rehabilitation training.
After sending Junjun to the rehabilitation room, Du Shaoheng went to find Dr. Liang.
The night before, Dr. Liang had sent him a text message saying the test results were ready.
Du Shaoheng pushed the door open, and as soon as he entered the office, Dr. Liang stood up, “Mr. Du, you’re here.”
Du Shaoheng nodded, and with the corner of his eye, he saw a stack of reports on the table.
Presumably, this was his test report.
He walked to the table, casually picked it up, and since he couldn’t understand the dense data on it, he looked up and asked, “Dr. Liang, what are the results?”
Dr. Liang: “There’s bad news, but also good news.”
Du Shaoheng: “Just tell me directly, I’m already mentally prepared.”
Dr. Liang: “Mr. Du, please sit down.”
Du Shaoheng sat down across from Dr. Liang.
Dr. Liang said, “First, the bad news is, unfortunately… the results of this test can already confirm that you indeed have spinocerebellar ataxia. However, the good news is, this disease in your body will not be passed on to the next generation, so you can be at ease on that front.”
Upon hearing this, Du Shaoheng’s complexion turned slightly pale, but he quickly composed himself, “Got it.”
Even though he seemed calm, Dr. Liang could tell that he was still a bit shaken.
Dr. Liang felt somewhat conflicted.